A Russian court has rejected calls to free the imprisoned members of a
feminist punk band that performed a protest song against Vladimir Putin
inside Moscow’s main cathedral.

Three members of Pussy Riot had their detention extended until June 24 today
in a case that has sparked bitter disputes over freedom of speech and the
close relationship between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Kremlin.

Maria Alekhina, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Ekaterina Samutsevich have been in
prison since they were arrested in early and mid-March. They face seven
years in jail if convicted of hooliganism for the “punk prayer” against Mr